


I Wanna Introduce You to my Kinfolk

by firstdegreefangirl



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Developing Relationship, Future Fic, M/M, Meet the Family, Meeting the Parents, Near Future, Owen deserves dad of the year honestly, Road Trips, Songfic, Surprises, also bobbob's fault, also ~helpful~, he's so helpful, reassuring boyfriend!Carlos, starting with the bar scene in the pilot, this is Sam Hunt's fault
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:54:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24784189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firstdegreefangirl/pseuds/firstdegreefangirl
Summary: Carlos knew pretty much from the day he met TK that he was all in on ... whatever TK would let them be.Now it's time for him to prove that, with a hand from Owen.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Comments: 5
Kudos: 177





	I Wanna Introduce You to my Kinfolk

**Author's Note:**

> It's here! I've only been waiting around on this for like ... six months? Bobbob, my darling, I guess I can't tease you with this one anymore, but I'm sure I'll come up with something else.
> 
> Listen to Kinfolk by Sam Hunt while you read. It's the impetus for this whole thing.

“Wanna dance?” Carlos sidles up to the firefighter, leans against the bar to face him. 

He doesn't really know who the new guy is, just that he’s part of the crew at Michelle’s station, the mis-matched team their new captain had cobbled together when he came to town. Carlos has heard the rumors, is pretty sure that this is the captain’s son, but doesn’t know his name, or anything about him other than that he might have moved from New York. If he’s the captain’s kid, he’s from New York; if not, Carlos doesn’t know anything about him. 

But he’s hot, and Carlos could be mistaken, but he thinks he’s noticed this veritable stranger checking him out more than a couple times since he walked into the honky-tonk. 

He’s been waiting for his chance to go over and introduce himself, knows that if he doesn’t at least try to make a move tonight, he’ll kick himself for it later. 

At the very least, he wants to say hello, get to know the guy, maybe make a friend, if there’s not enough there to build it into at least a first date. 

Now there’s a line dance breaking out, and Michelle is off making friends with the new fire captain, which leaves Carlos without a dance partner. Unless he can convince this attractive man to join him on the open floor. 

He watches the man size him up, run the tip of his tongue across his top row of teeth and chuckle as he shoves his weight off of the bar. Carlos has hardly known he exists for an hour, but he can already feel himself falling fast. 

“Yeah,” He turns and leads Carlos onto the dance floor, falling into an easy rhythm with the rest of the group. Carlos matches him step for step, gives them both a few beats to settle into the dance before he tries to make any conversation. As they finish a turn, step back into each other’s space, Carlos grins at him, slow and easy. 

“So, what’s your name?” 

“Strand.” He raises his eyebrows. “I’m Captain Strand’s son, if you haven’t put that together yet.” 

_Oh, so that’s how he wants to play it_. 

Carlos knows flirting when he sees it, especially when it’s as obvious as this. He rolls his eyes, makes sure it’s exaggerated enough to be sarcastic and silly, giving as good as he gets. 

“Yeah? Might get a little confusing, calling you both ‘Strand’ if I run into y’all on a scene. Got a first name?” 

“TK.” He’s just enough shorter than Carlos that he has to look up to smirk at him. Carlos can’t put a finger on why he’s so interested in TK, given that they’ve hardly spoken, but he can tell that he’s going to have to stay on his toes to keep up with the game they’re playing tonight. 

“Initials, huh?” Carlos turns with the rest of the group, standing beside TK now and looking at him out the corner of his eye. “Gonna tell me what they stand for?” He tilts his chin a little bit, feels his eyebrows lift, challenging TK with every move. 

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” TK steps to face him, shimmies his shoulders. Carlos’ mouth goes dry and he has to force himself not to stare at his chest. “You know, I didn’t get your name yet.” 

“Carlos.” TK keeps staring at him expectantly. “Reyes. I’m with APD. Known Michelle – Captain Blake – for years.” 

“Captain Blake, huh? I met her this morning. Seems nice.” 

“Eh, she’ll prove you wrong soon enough.” Carlos winks and tries not to think too hard about the flutter in his stomach when TK tips his head back to laugh. “You’re one of the new guys, then? Don’t think I’ve seen you around before.” 

“Yeah, Dad and I rolled in a couple weeks ago, got settled in after they finished the station remodel.” 

“Like it so far?” 

“I like what I’m looking at right now.” TK swings his hips, sliding a little closer into Carlos’ space and tipping his chin down so he’s looking up at Carlos through his eyelashes. 

“Do you now?” He’s fighting to keep the blush off his cheeks, can feel his face growing warm under TK’s steady gaze. “You got a type, then?” 

“Depends.” TK pulls his lower lip between his teeth and Carlos feels his eyes go wide. “What’s yours?” 

“Dodging the question, city boy?” They rotate, switching positions on the floor in time with the other couples dancing around them. “I’ll play along. Don’t have a type. It’s not like I’ve ever seen anyone like you before.” 

The song ends before TK can respond, and the small crowd disperses back to tables and barstools, drinks surrounded by puddles of condensation. 

TK freezes, and Carlos begins to think he’s missed his chance. Just when he’s about to step back, cut his losses and hope he can talk Michelle into getting the team to come out again next week, TK leans around him, sticks two fingers in Carlos’ back pocket and pulls out his phone. 

He waves the device between their faces, his coy smile appearing every time the phone drops to his chin. 

“Well?” When Carlos doesn’t respond, TK steps a tiny bit closer again. “You want my number or not?” 

It’s forward, confident in a way that startles Carlos. He’d invited TK to dance, drawn bright smiles and easy conversation from him, but couldn’t bring himself to ask about contacting him moving forward. But if TK is offering, Carlos figures he must have said something right, so he reaches for his phone and unlocks it, then hands it back. 

TK types his number in, adds some sort of emoji next to his name. Carlos watches his fingers dance across the phone screen and the thought of where else those fingers could be put to use distracts him enough that he stops paying attention until TK is sliding his whole hand into Carlos’ pocket, squeezing his ass playfully as he returns the phone. 

“See you around?” 

“Yeah, see you.” Carlos’ voice sounds dazed to his own ears, but before he can figure out what else to say, TK is gone. He watches him stroll back toward the bar, slide easily onto the barstool next to his dad and lean his head on his shoulder. It’s a quiet moment, something Carlos can tell is routine between the men. And it makes Carlos yearn for that kind of casual contact with TK, pulls all sorts of images to the front of his mind, flashing one after another as he sips his beer and nods along with whatever Michelle is saying. 

He’s picturing himself and TK, in his bed, driving down the highway in his Camaro, arms around waists in his parents’ living room, lunches together while they’re both in uniform, quiet movie nights, the old drive-in where his high school best friend worked, all of it. He wants to know anything and everything TK will tell him, wants to walk the streets of New York and see where he came from, take him to Sonora and show him where he grew up. 

It all passes through his mind in an instant, and he’s _terrified_ by how badly he feels like he needs to see TK again. 

Even if he’s only sitting 15 feet away in the bar. 

* * *

It’s not even a day later when Carlos swallows his pride and texts TK. He’s just finished cleaning up the kitchen after he fixed breakfast, and he realizes that he’s got an entire day off ahead of him with nothing planned. 

He’s not angling for sex, though he certainly isn’t going to turn it down either. Mostly, he’s hoping he and TK can hang out for a while; maybe take a tour of Austin. He’s pretty sure the guy would be a _fantastic_ lay, but doesn’t want to squander any potential he might have at a relationship by rushing him into the bedroom. 

Which is why he’s decently surprised when half an hour after he texts TK and asks if he’s hungry for tacos, he’s being pushed up against his own front door. 

Just like last night at the bar, he gives as good as he gets, a constant back and forth as they ping-pong between surfaces in his living room. 

He was right; TK is incredible in bed; close to an hour later, they’re both spent, exhausted and breathing heavy, no energy left to straighten their disheveled clothes. Carlos is stretched out across his sofa, one arm dangling off the side to brush his fingers against TK’s where he’s lying on the floor. He’d landed there after rolling off of Carlos, who was too busy recovering from his orgasm to try and hold TK in place on top of him. 

TK’s shirt is open, half of the buttons probably littering the carpet where neither of them had the patience to take their time with the garment. Carlos’s own polo shirt is … somewhere, but he can’t crane his neck far enough around to see where it landed when TK had tossed it over his shoulder. 

Eventually, the panting stops and it’s just the two of them lying near each other in awkward silence. Carlos hasn’t ever been one for no-strings-attached sex, feels like he should say something to break the tension, tell TK that he’d like to see him again, maybe even leave their clothes on the next time, really get to know each other. 

He takes a deep breath and shifts as far onto his side as he can without having to let go of his loose grasp on TK’s hand. 

“You know … I didn’t just want to take you home last night.” 

TK goes still, and Carlos feels him tense right down to his fingertips. He’d have been able to see it, even if they hadn’t been touching, could have watched the way his shoulders pulled up and his back arched slightly. 

“You’re the one who texted me.” TK pulls his hand back and Carlos misses the contact almost before it’s gone. “You-you’re the one who invited me over. You could have stopped this at any point along the way, and now you come around and say that you didn’t want to take me home?” 

He’s sitting up now, legs half-bent on the floor in front of him, and there’s a tiny spark at the back of Carlos’ brain for the way he looks, pants undone and shirt torn open, completely debauched with his legs drawn up. 

But he makes himself ignore that, focus on the entirely different kind of tension building up between them. TK’s eyes are wide and he’s looking around like he’s trying to find an escape route, like he’s ready to bolt and never speak to Carlos again. There’s a world of hurt in his expression, and Carlos kicks himself for being the one to put it there. 

“Easy, TK. Take a breath.” He lifts a hand and sits up, moving slowly enough that he’s not going to startle TK. “Not what I meant. I didn’t _just_ want to take you home for the night. Or, morning, as it were. You’re _reall_ _y_ good at that-” 

“You’re not so bad yourself.” He can see TK relaxing when he realizes that Carlos isn’t about to kick him out. Carlos chuckles and continues. 

“So what if we see how we are at the rest of it? Can I make you dinner after work some night?” 

TK doesn’t bristle this time, but Carlos watches the cagey look come back across his face as he grasps the ends of his shirt and starts trying to figure out how many buttons he’ll be able to fasten to leave the house. 

“Um, you know … I … I’m new to town, I don’t know about … I’ve got a shift.” He reaches for his phone, grimaces too quickly at the screen to have actually looked at anything on it. “36 minutes to go eight miles? Jeez, thought I left the crazy traffic in Manhattan.” 

There’s almost no way he’d had time to pull up a GPS route; Carlos knows when he’s being lied to. TK is looking for an excuse to leave, a valid reason to run away from what Carlos just laid out in front of him. 

Still, he wants to get TK to stay, even if it’s at the expense of an answer to his dinner invitation. He’s on his feet now, fastening his jeans and doing up his belt, and Carlos wonders if there’s a law that could make it illegal for TK to cover any more skin than he absolutely must. 

“Why don’t we … go for round two?” He offers, raising his eyebrows and smiling. “And then I can drive you. I can flip on the light bar _and_ siren.” 

“You’re sweet,” There’s something in the way TK says it that Carlos can tell means he’s about to leave anyway. “And _very_ hot.” But not hot enough to keep him here for 20 more minutes. “But I like to just zone out and listen to music before work.” 

_There it is_. 

TK has his keys in his hand, and is opening the door before Carlos can say anything to convince him to close it again. 

“Text me!” It’s a last ditch effort, and as soon as he hears TK’s car back down the driveway, he flops down on the couch and flings an arm across his eyes. 

All he’d wanted to do was grab lunch. For a little while there, he’d had so much more. But now? Now he has even less than he’d started with. 

* * *

It’s another few months before Carlos lets himself revisit how badly he wants to share his entire life with TK. He still sees him at work, and a handful of times in their personal lives, but there’s a different energy between them. TK comes over after work, lets Carlos cook for him, but bolts before the evening can really get started. 

Clearly, he’s only interested in a physical relationship. And that’s OK, except that it’s not, because Carlos wants so much more. 

But he won’t let himself be hung up on someone he can’t have. TK is still at the forefront of his mind near constantly, but he forces the thoughts away from his relationship fantasies. He thinks about TK in his bed, on his couch, one time in the passenger seat of his car, keeps his imagination focused on the sex, how it’s somehow more mind blowing every time they fall together, try as Carlos might to stop it. 

He never thinks about TK at his breakfast table, seeing his hometown, any of the easy, domestic things he craves. 

Because it isn’t his fault that TK isn’t ready for that yet. And it’s not TK’s fault either. Neither of them are responsible for it, but that doesn’t make the ache in his heart any less. 

Then the static storm hit, and TK saved the bus driver. He called Carlos after, asked if they can get together. 

He’d assumed it was going to be another frenetic hookup, tried to tell himself not to go along, tried to remember how empty he always feels when TK leaves and he’s left alone with the knowledge of how badly he wants more than he’ll ever have with him. But he’d shown up anyway, met TK at a coffee shop around the corner from his house. 

And TK had surprised him. He’d had an iced tea waiting for Carlos when he sat down, told him how he’d been thinking about leaving Austin, or at least the AFD, explained a little bit more about what brought him and Owen down to Texas. Carlos had listened closely, hanging on his every word. TK was finally letting him in, and Carlos wasn’t about to take it for granted. 

He finished by telling Carlos that he still wasn’t sure if he was ready for a relationship, but he was open to finding out. 

Carlos had set his tea down, reached for TK’s hand and asked him to be his boyfriend. 

TK squirmed at the label, asked if they could call it something else, at least until he figured out what he was ready for. 

"We can call it whatever you want, TK.” Carlos had said, squeezing his fingers gently. “I’m just glad you’ll have me along for the ride.” 

* * *

The two months since the static storm have been among the best of Carlos’ life. He’s got a job he loves, a great group of friends, and a TK, whatever they’re calling it. It feels a lot like boyfriends, and Carlos has never been happier. Whenever they land a shared day off – and some of the days in between, too – TK stays over, sleeps in his bed, help him cook breakfast. 

It’s the spectacular sex they’d started with, and all of the domestic in-betweens Carlos had craved, at least a few days a week. 

He’s let himself start dreaming of a future again, years down the road, TK still beside him, still in his bed. There’s no particular set of goals, sometimes there’s a couple kids, maybe another dog, and sometimes it’s just the two of them, growing together, putting down roots right here in Austin. 

But first, there’s somewhere else he needs TK to see. 

Which leads to Carlos stopping by the 126 after a shift one day, even though he knows that TK is waiting for him at home. Everyone waves when he comes in, used to seeing him drop in to visit TK. There’s usually a fair bit of good-natured teasing, comments from TK’s coworkers about how they can’t even go 12 hours apart, but it’s easy for him to tell that everyone is rooting for them. 

He bumps into Owen outside the kitchen space, knocking shoulders with him as he rounds a corner faster than expected. 

“Carlos, hey!” The captain steps back, reaches out to steady them both. “Always nice to see you, but surely you know that TK has the day off?” 

“Yeah.” He’s suddenly shy, afraid that what he’s about to do might be an overstep. After all, they’ve only been dating a couple of months, and TK has been pretty clear about wanting to take things slow. But lately he’d been dropping hints in the same direction Carlos is thinking, and Carlos figures that he can trust Owen to tell him if this is a terrible idea. Still, he rubs the back of his neck sheepishly and steps back a little bit. “I was, uh, actually, I was hoping I could talk to you?” 

“Oh.” Carlos can’t read Owen’s expression, but he watches his eyes cloud over with something that looks a little bit like worry. He leads Carlos to his office, lets the door swing closed behind them and sits down at his desk, gesturing for Carlos to make himself comfortable in the chair opposite his own. “Is everything OK?” 

Carlos isn’t sure what, exactly, is going through Owen’s mind, but he knows enough about TK’s past to have at least a few ideas about why his dad would be so concerned. Especially because Carlos just dropped by unannounced, and is only now realizing how alarming that could look. 

“Yeah, TK’s fine. We’re fine.” He sees Owen’s shoulders sag a bit with relief. “I just have an idea to run by you.” 

Owen leans forward, tents his fingers and smiles. 

“Not planning to ask for my blessing, are you?” He’s teasing, but Carlos detects a hint of truth behind the words. “Because I like you, Carlos, but after what happened in New York … it wasn’t that long ago that-” Carlos cuts him off. 

“No! No sir, no blessings. Not yet, anyway.” He shakes his head, clearing the thought of a future proposal from his mind. They’re still a long ways off from that, he knows, and he has a more pressing request to make. “I was just thinking about taking him on a little getaway, getting out of Austin for a few days. As a surprise,” he adds meaningfully, hoping Owen will get the hint not to say anything to TK about this conversation. “But with our jobs, I know the days off can be tricky.” 

“And you were hoping I’d help coordinate your schedules so you could make that happen?” Carlos nods at him. 

“I’ve got some vacation days coming up at the end of the month, was thinking maybe there’d be a way he could have those same days so we can go somewhere?” 

“I’d have to check with his captain, but I’m pretty sure that can be arranged.” It’s another lighthearted joke, but Carlos remembers TK mentioning how his dad has always drawn careful lines between their relationships at work and at home. “There’s a time off request form you can fill out, it’ll go up to brass, but I can make sure no one notices the missing signature at the bottom.” 

“You know, Captain, as an officer of the law, I can’t just ignore that you’re suggesting forgery.” Carlos laughs when Owen winks at him, digging in his file cabinet for the form. It’s an easy request, a Wednesday afternoon, and Thursday, Friday and Saturday off, and he rolls his eyes but obeys when Owen tells him to turn around and he hears a pen scratch against the desk. 

“There. I don’t see a problem getting that approved.” Owen nods and slides the completed page into a tray on his desk. “Anything else I can help you with today, Carlos? I’m sure TK is looking forward to seeing you.” 

“I called on my way over. He’s making dinner tonight.” Carlos smiles, thinking about the pork chops TK had promised him. “But actually, there is one other thing. If TK doesn’t know I’m taking him out of town, he’s not going to know to pack a bag. Any chance I could talk you into putting something together? I can drop by the house and pick it up before we head out.” 

“Sure.” Owen leans back and relaxes into his chair. “You have a destination in mind? Just … so I know what to pack for him.” 

“Of course,” Carlos nods, knowing that Owen is probably more curious than practical in his question. “There’s a little town a few hours east of here. Not much going on out there, but the scenery couldn’t be better, and it’s a nice drive. He’d just need a few days’ worth of clothes, nothing special. Toothbrush, phone charger, the basics.” 

Owen nods again. 

“Small town, alright.” Carlos isn’t sure, but he thinks Owen may be onto him. He doesn’t say anything else though, other than to make plans for Carlos to pick up a bag of TK’s clothes the following Tuesday afternoon on his way to work. 

The next night, while TK is at work, Carlos calls his mom, asks if there’s anything going on in Sonora the last weekend of the month. He’d already checked the city’s website, and hadn’t seen anything official listed, but he knows that most weekends someone is having a barbecue or a picnic or a birthday party. It’s a big enough place that these things aren’t news, but the block he grew up on has a way of turning everything into a neighborhood party. 

It turns out – mercifully, because he’s not sure that he wants to make TK suffer through an entire party full of strangers – that he’s picked the one weekend that no one is throwing anything. 

Until, of course, he asks his next question. 

“Actually, Mami, I’ve got a few days off that week. TK, too, and I was thinking of bringing him out to see the city, get away from Austin for a few days.” 

“Oh!” He can hear the delight in his mother’s voice. “That would be wonderful, mijo! You’ve said such wonderful things; I can’t wait to meet him! Oh, and when your father finds out! Maybe we can cookout, invite a few of the neighbors.” 

“Mami, please, can we not make a whole thing of it? I don’t want to freak him out.” Carlos sighs, wondering for the first time if this was a good idea after all. 

“Nonsense. Everyone is so excited to hear more about him. Don’t you worry about any of it, sweetheart. Just let me know when you two leave Austin so we know to be expecting you, and we’ll take care of everything.” 

_That’s what he’s afraid of._

But she’s still his mother, so Carlos sends his love and bids her goodbye before busying himself with housework until TK gets home, trying to keep his mind off of everything his mother could be planning. 

He gave her a week and a half of notice; she could probably talk the Pope into coming to Sonora just to be on the TK Welcoming Committee. 

* * *

Nine days later, Carlos is picking TK up from work, the FDNY duffel he’d grabbed from Owen the day before stowed away in the trunk. 

TK slides into the passenger seat of the Camaro and leans across the console to press a soft kiss to Carlos’ lips. 

“Hey.” 

“Hey. Good shift?” 

“Nothing to write home about.” Carlos’ heart skips a beat when he hears TK talk about ‘home,’ even though he knows TK has no clue what they’re about to do. 

Which he knows, because TK has been asking all week if they should do something special with their miraculously matching days off. All Carlos would say was that he was already making the plans, all TK had to do was meet him after work on Wednesday. 

He’s leaning back from Carlos’ space now, fastening his seat belt and waiting for Carlos to put the car back in gear so he can reach for his hand. 

“Do I get to know where we’re going now?” 

“Patience, mi vida.” Carlos laughs and runs his thumb along the back of TK’s hand. “You’ll know soon enough.” 

He steers one-handed, navigating the Camaro onto the interstate and noticing the look on TK’s face when he points the car away from Austin. 

“Carlos, seriously, what’s the plan?” 

“First, we’re stopping for dinner. I know a place; think you’ll have room for tacos in half an hour or so?” 

“Always,” TK answers automatically, knowing that Carlos wouldn’t take him anywhere that didn’t serve fantastic food. There’s always room in his stomach if Carlos thinks these tacos are worth driving 45 minutes for, and they both know it. “What’s after first?” 

“Some more driving.” 

“We’re not going home tonight, are we?” 

“Ah, observant, I see.” He flicks his eyes over and grins at TK. 

“I don’t have a toothbrush or anything!” 

“It’s taken care of, Teek. I promise. You trust me?” 

“With my life.” 

“Alright, so trust me.” Carlos winks at him and lets go of TK’s hand just long enough to turn the radio up. 

They don’t talk much until Carlos pulls off of the highway and turns into the parking lot of a tiny hole-in-the-wall storefront. All of the signs are written in both Spanish and English, and Carlos pulls the door open for TK to walk into a grocery store. On one wall, there’s a serving bar with a line halfway to the back of the store. 

“Grocery store tacos?” TK looks at him incredulously. 

“Best tacos on the highway. You’ll see.” TK yawns as they join the back of the line, and Carlos wraps an arm around his waist, lets him lean his weight against his chest. By the time its their turn to order, TK hasn’t even looked at the menu, just turns toward Carlos and yawns again. 

“What’re you getting? I’ll have that.” 

So Carlos steps forward, orders six chicken tacos and six steak, with beans and rice. TK reaches into the beverage case while he pays and pulls out two sodas, popping the tops off with ease. 

They find a table, beaten up and dented aluminum with chairs that wobble, and Carlos watches as TK takes his first bite. He pushes a rouge bit of cilantro back into his mouth and groans. 

“Damn, these were worth a 45 minute drive.” He washes it down with a swig of his pineapple soda and sighs. 

“I stop every time I drive out this way.” Carlos turns his head to bite into his own taco, rolling his eyes when half of the filling falls out the back end. 

“Where are we going, anyway?” TK passes him a napkin and reaches for a thin metal fork to dig into the rice and beans. “You said this was step one?” 

“I’m taking you on a little getaway. I had time off to burn, worked a little magic with the AFD to get you the days off too so we could head out of town for a few days. We’ll come back sometime Saturday.” He runs his foot along TK’s calf, feels his leg twitch as he smiles. 

“Getaway, huh? Airport’s the other direction.” 

“We’re not flying. It’s only a three hour drive.” 

“To where?” 

“Where we’re going.” TK sticks his tongue out at that and Carlos laughs. “Would you just be patient? You’ll find out back in the car.” 

“I want to sleep back in the car.” He yawns again. 

“There’ll be plenty of time for both. We’ve still got a couple hours. C’mon, eat. We’ll stop at the pastelería on the way out, get a snack for after your nap.” 

They finish the meal in relative silence, mouths full of delicious food, before Carlos selects several large cookies from the small bakery display. TK leans against his side again, presses his face into Carlos’ neck and whines quietly at the florescent light reflecting from the display case. Carlos runs his hand through TK’s hair, supporting his weight easily as he pays and leads him back out to the car. 

Carlos pulls TK’s door open, walks around the car while he’s getting settled, and puts the paper sack in the center console. 

“Back on the road?” TK nods and lolls his head against the seat, turning so he can see Carlos’ profile. When Carlos glances back at him, the streetlights cast an almost ethereal glow across his face. “Alright. Now, do you want to nap, or you want to know where we’re going?” 

“Where we’re going.” 

He merges back onto the highway and flicks his eyes over to TK again. 

“I’m taking you to Sonora.” TK purses his lips, and Carlos can see him trying to figure out if he’s heard of the town before. “Had a few days off, figured it’d be nice to go see my family again.” 

“Your … family?” TK is still searching for a connection, but understanding flashes across his face a moment later. “Your _family_ _?”_

“Yeah.” He reaches for TK’s hand. “But not just them. I want you to meet my family, sure, but more than that, I want to show you where I’m from, take you for milkshakes where we’d all gather Friday nights, let you see where I grew up.” 

“Your _family?”_ TK says it again, but it sounds like some of the panic is edging out of his voice. “We’ve only been dating for two months and …" He trails off. 

“And I’ve known your dad longer than that, haven’t I?” 

“That’s not the same—” 

“I know it’s not. And if you’re really not OK with this, we can go right past Sonora, find a hotel in Midland and have just as much fun with our days off. But I’m in this for the long haul, TK. My money’s on us, and I don’t ever want to be without you.” 

“Are you sure it’s the right time?” 

“There’s never going to be a perfect time, but I’m sure I want to do this. I don’t want to wait around. Far as I’m concerned, you’re part of my family now, and I want everyone else to love you as much as I do.” 

He isn’t worried about telling TK he loves him, knows he’d said it for the first time three weeks after they started dating, and knows TK had said it back not a week later. So no, he’s not worried about his reaction to that. But he is a little concerned about how TK will respond to Carlos having said he wants to spend the rest of their lives together. 

“Really? You think they will?” He looks at TK again, a short glance as he checks the mirror for a lane change, and sees the look on his face: awe-stricken and off-guard, but unmistakably happy. 

_OK, he didn’t have anything to worry about._

“Well maybe not quite as much as I do,” he acquiesces and squeezes TK’s fingers. “But almost that much.” 

“What if they don’t?” 

“They will.” Carlos says it with all the confidence he feels, knows his family already loves TK, just from the things he’s said on the phone, but still TK’s fingers twitch and stiffen. 

“What if I don’t make a good impression and they hate me?” Carlos can tell that the romantic wonder of Carlos wanting TK to meet his parents is wearing off as the realization sets in that TK is going to meet his parents. He’s starting to overthink, and Carlos knows that if he could see into TK’s brain, it would be an endless barrage of ways this could go wrong. “What if I say something stupid and they think I’d stupid and-and not good enough for you or—” 

“Take a breath.” Carlos chuckles and pulls TK’s hand over to rest on his knee as he pulls off of the highway and into a gas station. “They’ll love you. They already love you, just from the stories they’ve heard. You’ll make a great impression, because you’re a great guy, and they will love you. Honestly, I’m more worried about you not liking them.” 

“What?” 

“My family is great, but when you live in a small community like this, everything is an event.” He hears TK gasp and hurries to continue. “I texted my sister, asked her to keep Mami in line, but we’re grilling out tomorrow and it’s got a way of turning into a block party.” He slides the car into park and looks at the alarm on TK’s face. “Hey, look at me. You’re OK with this? You can say no, we’ll keep driving right through town, stop on the way back for lunch. Even if we do go, you say the word and we can head out, I promise. Everything fits into two duffel bags; we’ll hardly even have to pack.” 

TK smiles at that and takes a shaky breath. 

“How do you even have my clothes? I haven’t left that much stuff behind, have I?” 

“Same way we miraculously managed to have the same three days off of work.” He smirks and waits for the realization to dawn in TK’s eyes, and they answer together. “Your dad.” 

“My dad.” TK rolls his eyes. “I can’t believe you told my dad I was meeting your parents before you told me.” 

“Maybe I didn’t tell him that part.” Carlos drops TK’s hand and gets out to start the gas pump before leaning back into the car. “Maybe I just told him I wanted to take you out of town for a couple days, needed a hand keeping it a surprise.” He steps back to close the flap and slides back into his seat, reaching across the console to pull TK in for a kiss. “I’m gonna break into these cookies. Want to split one?” 

TK nods and reaches for the bag, breaking one of the cookies in half and holding them out for Carlos to choose. He bites into his piece, and holds a hand over his mouth to talk. 

“Don’t suppose my dad packed us waters? He’s always overprepared, but I could use something to wash this down.” 

“I’ll check.” Carlos sits the his cookie on the console and ducks back out of the car, popping the trunk and calling forward to TK. “There’s no water in mine, but I’ll check yours. If not, I’ll go buy a couple before we pull out.” 

He reaches for the FNDY duffel and pulls back the zipper. It doesn’t look like there’s any bottles inside, but he still paws carefully between the neatly folded clothes to be sure they hadn’t rolled to the bottom of the bag. It’s shirts, shirts, pants, a toiletries bag, pajamas and - 

A matte gold cardboard box with an unmistakable logo on the front. 

Carlos chokes on his own spit as he zips the bag closed and slams the trunk. He holds the box behind his back as he circles back to the driver’s side door and leans in again. 

“No dice. I’ll be right back. Oh, and, I think your dad wants us to have a good weekend.” 

In one smooth motion, he tosses the box of condoms onto TK’s lap and closes the door, jogging toward the convenience store. He’s back a couple of minutes later, holding twin bottled of fruit-flavored sparkling water. TK is smirking when he opens the door, and as soon as he sits down again, he’s tossing the box back at Carlos. 

“Oh my God, I _know_ you didn’t ask my dad to pack condoms!” But the way he says it, Carlos can tell that he doesn’t know at all, just hopes that what he’s saying is true. “Especially if you knew we were visiting your parents!” 

“No!” Carlos thinks back over his conversations with Owen and grimaces. “But now that I think about it, he might think I’m taking you out of town for sex-capades.” 

“Did you tell him that?!” TK’s eyes are ready to pop out of his head, and Carlos can’t help but laugh. 

“I said I had a surprise for you, in a small town, and we needed a few days off. For a minute it looked like he was onto me about it being a visit to my parents’, but …" 

“But maybe he thought it was something else.” TK squeezes his eyes shut and shakes his head. “We’re off to a great start. My dad thinks this is a sex trip, and I still have to worry about making a good impression on your parents.” 

“You don’t have to worry about that. They’ll love you. And if they don’t, it doesn’t matter. Because I do. Ready?” Carlos puts his bottle in the cupholder and reaches for TK’s hand again. “We’ve got about an hour until city limits, if you still want to grab a nap. I’ll wake you up before we get there, I promise.” 

TK smiles at him and shifts to a more comfortable position in the seat while Carlos leans over to adjust the radio station before he puts the car in drive and slips his hand back into TK’s. Before he lets TK tangle their fingers together again, though, he reaches up and runs his hand through TK’s soft hair. 

“Get some rest, mi vida. Big weekend coming up.” 

TK winds his arm around Carlos’, pulling his arm across the car to rest against his chest, and murmurs something as he falls asleep. Carlos can’t distinguish the words, but the message is unmistakable as he pulls out of the gas station and back onto the highway. 

The next hour passes in quiet domesticity. TK starts snoring softly, and after a particularly bright street light, stirs just enough to pull the hood of his sweatshirt up over his eyes. He grumbles sleepily and Carlos flexes his fingers, the only comfort he can provide while he’s driving. 

As they push further west, the radio station turns to static, just like it always does. Carlos knows they’ll pick it back up in 20 minutes or so, but for the meantime, he’s content to listen to the almost-silence, the static that sounds like the sound the stars would make and TK sleeping soundly in the seat beside him. 

Sure enough, the music returns little by little. It’s patchy at first, the soundwaves almost running out before they get to the Camaro, but it builds stronger as he passes the county line and sees the sign that he’s only got 34 more miles until Sonora. The quiet country music fills the space between them in the car, and Carlos presses his foot a little harder toward the floorboard, eager to see his family again. 

True to his word, 25 minutes later, he’s driving past the sign welcoming him home to Sonora and pulling into a parking spot at the first gas station he can find. Once the car is stopped, he turns sideways in the seat to jostle TK’s shoulder. 

“TK, c’mon, we’re into town. Rise and shine. Told you I’d wake you up, remember?” 

“Hmm?” He stirs and curls himself closer to Carlos’ arm until the seatbelt restricts his movement. 

“We’re almost there. Welcome to Sonora, TK.” 

TK sits up blearily, adjusting his grip on Carlos’ hand until they’re both resting on his thigh. 

“Oh,” He yawns. “It’s dark.” 

“Yeah,” Carlos laughs and reaches over to smooth down TK’s hair where it got mussed from being pressed into the seat. “It’s almost 11; nighttime works like that.” 

“Hmm.” He settles back into the seat and smiles. “Guess it does.” 

“I was going to offer the grand tour tonight, but how about we get to the house now, and we’ll go around town after breakfast?” 

At that, TK’s eyes come open the rest of the way. 

“Time to meet your parents?” 

“Only if you’re ready. What do you say? Time to meet my parents?” 

“You’ll be there?” 

“I will. I can’t wait to introduce you, let you see the house at the end of the street, take you all around town and show it off.” He smiles at TK, who reciprocates and squeezes his hand. 

“Then let’s go.” 

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a DAY, but I'm finally around to posting this, so let me know what y'all think! I can go for some extra warm fuzzies today.  
> xoxo


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